LONDON - Syria has been named as the most dangerous country in the world, amidst its civil war and the rise of Isis, according to a huge set of new figures showing global levels of peace and violence.

In 2008, Syria was classed as the world's 88th most peaceful country, out of 162 nations included in the table. In the last few years, during devastating civil war and the rapid rise of Isis in the country, it has fallen from almost the middle of the table to the very bottom.

Figures based on 23 different metrics, including factors like murder levels, perceptions of criminality, terrorism and military expenditure, have been collated to form a single figure, the Global Peace Index (GPI), part of the research unveiled by major think tank the Institute for Economics and Peace.
This is the ninth edition of the GPI tables, which are released annually. Past figures show Syria's steady fall down the rankings since 2008, with the largest decline in peacefulness coming in 2011, after the civil war began.
By contrast, the small Nordic nation of Iceland is the most peaceful country in the world.

It has a GPI score of 1.148, the lowest in the world, due to its low level of militarisation and domestic and international conflict, and its high level of security and societal stability. When it comes to GPI scores, a lower number means a country is more peaceful, and a higher one indicates it is more violent.
Iceland is one of the few countries in the world (and the only Nato member) with no standing army. Instead, its military consists of the Icelandic Coast Guard, a pseudo-military force which consists of a small number of ships and aircraft which guard the island's waters and airspace.

It spends 0.13 per cent of its annual GDP on its military, the second lowest figure in the world. By comparison, the UK spends 2.49 per cent, and the USA spends 4.35 per cent, according to the CIA World Factbook.
Nordic countries, along with Alpine nations like Austria and Switzerland, are represented highly in the top 10 most peaceful countries - Denmark is just behind Iceland, in second place, and Finland is in sixth.

Sweden and Norway are in 13th and 17th place respectively, classed as less peaceful than their neighbours due to their slightly higher crime levels, and much higher levels of weapons exports - despite Sweden's neutrality and peaceful reputation, it is the world's 12th biggest exporter of weapons.

The UK comes in as the 39th most peaceful. Compared to other leading countries, perceptions of criminality and the threat of terrorism are higher in the UK. The fact it is a nuclear-armed state also hurts its ranking amongst peaceful countries. - (ANA) -

The least peaceful countries in the world

The most peaceful countries in the world

AB/ANA/ 24 July 2015 - - -